Nichols moving to sidelines for ABC broadcasts of Finals

ABC's coverage of the NBA Finals appears to be set, with the Disney-owned network announcing that "NBA Countdown" will precede the series, moving away from initial plans to have games preceded by "The Jump."

But there will still be a role for "The Jump" host Rachel Nichols -- who is scheduled to serve as sideline reporter during Finals games.

Countdown will be hosted by Maria Taylor and broadcast "from a new, climate-controlled rooftop set atop ESPN’s New York production center," as relayed by Jon Lewis of Sports Media Watch. (ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown will also broadcast from that location.)

The in-game team of Mike Breen, Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy will continue to call the actual Finals games.

So where does all of this leave Doris Burke, the respected sideline reporter and analyst?

Well, only as the first woman to serve as analyst for the Finals, a role she will perform for ESPN Radio broadcasts of the games.

Burke is filling in for regular radio analyst Hubie Brown, who did not travel to the NBA's Orlando bubble for the season restart.